Structuring of time and it's impact on narrative progression

What is it?
The structuring of time is vital to narrative progression as majority of films take place over a couple of days, weeks or years. To create this impression withing a 2 hour film, the scriptwriter must order the narrative effectively.
The structuring of narrative time is made of a combination of 3 elements:
-Temporal Order: how the film is screened and manipulated to advance the narrative. (eg. flashbacks or traditional plot order)
-Temporal Duration: foreshortening of time of the storyline to fit the length of the narrative. It is important to note technical effects and how it insinuates a specific time frame. (eg: montage)
-Temporal Frequency: the number of times an event or part of event is shown to an audience. It usually consists of the repetition of action from the same or different camera angles to emphasize the importance of the scene withing narrative and creates rhythm in text.

Structuring of time and it's impact on narrative progression in Blade Runner
-Temporal Order in Blade Runner has been tradiontonally filmed as there areno flashforwards or flashbacks (linear narrative structure- plot unfolds in the order in which the characters experience it)
-Temporal Duration has been shown throught the foreshortening of scenes. Scott doesn't need to show whole part of scene.
Example: when Deckard arrives at Roy's place, we do not need to seem walk through the front door to know he has entered the house as he is walking up the stairs in the next scene
In most location changes, we see a short 5 second scene of Decakard in the Spinner, to insinuate that he is travelling to another location, rather than showing the comlpete journey.
-Temporal Frequency of wide shots of LA 2019 establish the setting to remind the viewer of Scott's futuristic representation.
-When Pris and Roy attack Deckard at separate times of the film, a low angle shot is used to emphasise the strength/ hostilitity and threat they pose on Deckard, as he is seen as helpless and inferior by their powerfully demeaning stance.

Structuring of time and it's impact on narrative progression in Notorious

-The Temporal Order: Story line is linear (establishment of characters, plot, solution)

-Alicia is introduced as the daughter of a convicted Nazi spy, causing her involvement in a mission (plot) and interaction with Devlin (2nd plot)

- Alicia finds out where the uranium is being received from (mission solution) and Devlin rescues her from being poisoned, whilst declaring his love (relationship solution)

-Temporal Duration: When Alicia and Alex go on their honeymoon (which we presume to have taken a while), we do not see them leave, but only their return to the house which insinuates they had been away.

-Alicia does not report back to Devlin for a week before he gets worried, but we only see one scene where he is waiting for her at the town square. By the assistance of Devlin's dialogue to his boss revealing she hadn't reported back for a week, and continuous scenes of Alicia drinking cups of coffee, the time duration of a week is represented within 20  minutes of the film.

-Temporal Frequency: constant close-up shots with shallow depth-of field framing Devlin and Alicia together to symbolize their intimacy/ forbidden love.

The audience can gain insight towards the extent of the relationship they share and the implications it could create, which contributes to the development of the plot lines of the narrative.

Multiple Storylines

What is it?
Story lines which run parallel or intersect with main storyline. They are designed to add depth and colour into narrative and its progression, as well a range of narrative possibilities.
It is usual for multiple storylines to intersect with main plot at some points during the film.
Sometimes, they do not intersect. This technique is called Parallelism. Parallelism occcurs when the actions of each character contribute to our understanding of the plot themes as comment on each other in text, but the storylines are running parallel.
Multiple storylines allow for the development of allegory (The representation of abstract ideas or principles by characters, figures, or events in narrative, dramatic, or pictorial form ) and metaphor (A thing regarded as representative or symbolic of something else, esp. something abstract.)


Multiple Story Lines inside L.A 2019
The audience is introduced to the chance of meeting four Replicants at the very beginning of the film. Each of these replicants have their own stories to tell, which is seen through their own eyes as well as from the perspective of Deckard's story. Not every scene is from Deckard's perspective. When J. F Sebastion first meets Pris, this scene is more so hers than anyone else's. This is also clear when Deckard and Rachael are in scenes together. It appears as though the scene belongs to Rachael.
The general concept of Blade Runner is how all these individual characters come together to make the linear story possible.
The most prominent three entwining story lines in the film belong to Deckard, Roy and Rachael.
Roy represents the raw emotions each of the escapees deal with, as well as the deeper human instincts to survive at any cost. Rachael is the innocence inside the world of Blade Runner. Through her soft, sometimes naive dialogue she is depicted as a  young, innocent girl, trapped inside this futuristic hell. Deckard is the rogue officer trying to escape from his past which is only haunted by memories of pain and death. By meeting Rachael, Deckard begins to see an escape. She is his now, only desire  in a near apocalyptic universe. There is a reason to try and survive now.
Roy's influence over Deckard is contrast to that of Rachael's. Roy interprets the darkness and unfairness that this world has produced upon them (Replicants). Roy allows Deckard to visualise the slavery and fear that any living thing suffers through in order to survive.

Multiple Story Lines in Notorious

 We are first introduced to the storyline based around Alicia and her frivolous nature. It is because of her nature and ancestry that she is then selected to infiltrate a tight-net german spy ring. Through being chosen for this position, the protagonist Alicia is introduced to agent Devlin which spurs off in an alternate tangent which becomes the second of the multiple story lines. Their relationship is in peril as Alicia is faced with the decision to either marry Alex to further infiltrate the group, or to remain with Devlin. His refusal to admit his love pushes Alicia's further into danger, which creates the third storyline of her closer association with Alex, and discovering of the true motives behind the Spy Ring's actions.

Viewers realise that Alicia and Devlin's relationship will face obstacles as the knowledge of Alicia's involvement in the upcoming mission is still yet to be known. Similarly, Devlin's obvious love for Alicia (regardless to his refusal in admitting this), will cause tension between the two and their involvement in the mission together. Thus, the story lines intersect during the film (eg- The Party scene where Devlin kisses Alicia to cover up the 'mission,' but to also expose his feelings) rather than running paralell. This adds depth to the development and progression of the narrative, as well the range of narrative possibilities. 

Hitchcock ends his film by combining the three story lines together and solving each of it's conflicts.

Eg- Devlin admit his love for Alicia.

-Alicia is taken from Alex's house, where her involvement in the infiltration has caused danger to her own health.

-Alex is left to deal with his german affiliates.

Editing of visual composition and sound

What is it?
Editing refers to the selection and joining together of vision and sound. It creates the chain of events in cause and effect relationships occurring in space and time (narrative). Time and pace are important considerations for editing, as it is expected to increase as the narrative moves closer to its climax.
The codes and conventions of editing:
Vision: when shots are joined and matched in colour and composition.
Rhythm: pattern of narrative and understanding of what to expect.
Space: location of each shot within scene and world of story.
Time: placement of shot to development storyline.
 Most narratives usually follow Continuity editing (apparent, smooth, seamless editing that does not draw attention to itself). This makes the representation realistic for viewers.

Editing in Blade Runner
Deckard 'retiring' Zhora
This scene is a clear example of how vision mixing with sound can create a deeper, darker representation of something. This particular sequence of shots with the faster tempo and lower tones mixed with the slow motion visuals on the screen shows the gritty desperation that any living thing is willing to suffer through in order to survive. Even though she is only a replicant, Zhora still has human feelings, skin and memories. Even when Deckard shoots her she bleeds. This scene details how there is such little difference between the Replicants and humans. 


Deckard's bullet-shots are edited louder so that his weapon appears more threatening, as these shots are the last thing the replicant Zhora will hear. Adding slow motion enhances the scene as it not only increases the dramatic tension but really allows the audience to connect to the pain and fear in Zhora. 


Editing in Notorious
Viewers immediately exposed to shots of Alicia and Devlin framed together (eg- drunk driving scene, and coffee shop scene in Rio). The space between them gradually decreases as the characters get more comfortable with each other and their intimacy increases. This concept's extent would be seen most effective when Devlin tells Alicia he loves her (the scene when he finds her poisoned in the bed and is going to rescue her); in contrast to this would be the framing of when the couple were suffering from the most tension (just after Alicia held the dinner party and she started getting poisoned, blaming it on a 'hang over'), the framing emphasises the distance between the two characters and their undealt feelings.

The sequence that best represents how sound editing effectively works with visual composition is the scene when Alica figures out that the coffee is what is poisoning her. Throughout her time getting poisoned, the director has been giving an inkling to the audience, showing the coffee cup in focus more than the background and keeping it in the foreground with a closeup. This highlights some significance though the audience would not know what exactly. When the doctor mixes up his coffee with Alicia's, the music intensifies during the course of scene, with quick abrupt cuts to closeup's on Alicia to Madam Sebastian and Alex Sebastian. This is to display the recognition that her husband and mother in law are the culprits and something is wrong with the coffee, hence the commotion they brought up when the doctor was about to drink Alicia's cup.